In Which Magic is Thought to Live in Her Nose
by Steve Zissou
Summary: You feel like you might sneeze. Or maybe it's your nose trying to tell you something, because it tingles this way often when things are amiss. A sign, your magic lives in your nose, doesn't it?  DracoXHermione


You feel like you might sneeze. Or maybe it's your nose trying to tell you something, because it tingles this way often when things are amiss. A sign, your magic lives in your nose, doesn't it? Telling you, 'Ah, feel that? Something dark and cursed is near, dear.' You wonder if maybe you are the only one to ever feel like this. Hermione, are you the only one who thinks their magic lives in their nose?

He sneezes.

"Ah, Bless you," you say and he sniffs and doesn't say thank you. Not like you expected it, or anything. You realize he's pinching his nose with his index finger and thumb, as if holding off another sneeze and you blink owlishly at him. He blinks owlishly at you and the pair of you must look somewhat ridiculous, staring and blinking like dazed owls at one another.

"It's in your nose too, isn't it?" you ask. It's a stupid question because you expect he won't answer and you feel like you sound much like Luna Lovegood asking such things. But, you asked, and you've got pride issues to sort out. You can't feel stupid openly, that's not like Hermione Granger at all. You must place confidence in your questions, as though the fact that someone else didn't ask first makes the rest of the world so much slower than you.

It's hard to feel confident, though, when Draco Malfoy is set on making you feel stupid just by looking at you wrong. He's not pinching his nose anymore, but he sure is looking perplexed, what with his eyebrows drawn together and his pale, pink lips pursing. You gulp, but you don't stand down. You ask again, "Your magic, it's in your nose too?"

"What kind of question is that, Granger?" He practically spits it, but now you're on to him. He's not saying his words to be mean because you're ridiculous. He's being mean because he doesn't want you to notice how his cheeks are slowly growing pinker and pinker. Oh, he's lost this one. He's nothing now that his embarrassment has given him away. You grin, a smug little grin that you often get when winning certain arguments (which is more often than not) and you almost laugh when he scowls.

"It is! It's in mine too," now you are laughing, and boy does he look like he's mad. Sputtering, spitting, mad. Draco Malfoy is mad, embarrassed and speechless for a whole damned minute. You're incredibly pleased for this drawn out moment, until he says, "You sound just like Loo- Luna."

It's your turn to sputter and blush, Hermione. Your turn to protest in a rush of stuttered words. "I.. well, No, it's just.." And his turn to laugh and look smug.

Until both of you are quiet and there are traces of pink in his cheeks still and you can't shake the hot feeling from your face no matter what you do. All together now.

"I do sound a bit like..."

"It's funny to say, but I think it is in my..."

"Oh," you say. "Oh, you first."

"Uh. Oh. I was just going to say," he averts his eyes. "Well. I mean, does your nose tingle too, when you do powerful spells? Or when you find a cursed object?" You nod and nod again. You look around the dusty old room you two have been standing in.

"It's exactly like that. But in this place, it's either the dust.. or Madame Hutchinson has been cursing the heck out of something in this room." A keen observation, and he agrees with a slight nod. You are both carefully not looking at one another while seemingly looking as if you are working. Looking for objects that are normally cursed. Good job, you tell your self, you won that one.

"So what were you saying?" he finally asks, though and you grow flushed again when you realize what he is talking about.

"What? I.. nothing. Say, what about that tea set over there?" Good job, Hermione. You look up and notice him looking at the tea set, but he's smiling devilishly. The chances of this coming back up during another one your "friendly" spats are very high, and you sigh at the thought. But the thought that he might use it to tease you until you look good and ready for a kiss, makes you smile as well.

He looks at you, raises an eyebrow. Oh, but he knows what you're thinking and he has to bring work back up so that you don't both do something about all this tension right here and now. "Yes. The tea set, looks like a likely candidate."


End file.
